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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 02:10 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Drakenforge.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 02:48 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Korbz.

MyifanW Wrote:

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Spoilernice out, Cyber. And thus, not a single "good" character remains.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 03:30 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MyifanW.

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Dragon Fogel · 01-21-2010, 03:59 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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**Schazer** · 01-21-2010, 04:02 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Schazer.

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The Observer took his leave. The lines of the world started to fade in the eyes of each contestant, until they stood alone in endlessness. The Creators watched the Composer's handiwork, as the deity took her sweet time pondering the next battlefield.

"If you've already established a battlefield, Composer, what's keeping you?" Yifan ventured this.

"Hmm? Oh... I suppose now that the stage has been... ah, cleared, to some extent, it is time to... raise the stakes, would you not think?" The Composer was smiling as usual, but there was a certain quality about it that prompted one of the Creators to speak up, but the host waved them down. A streak of malevolence now manifested, marring the outward serenity. "Post-act healing is out. From now on the Creations must tread carefully." Announcement complete, the Composer returned with a new vigour to shaping the next arena.

"Now see here," Creator Drae exclaimed, "That's all very well and good, but my creation is the only one missing a limb!"

The Composer did not deign to turn around at this outburst. The Creators noted, with some consternation, that it was not just the battlefield reshaping, but the ether around themselves also. They had no time to comment, as soon after their own location reformed into that of a plush, roomy head office. A large window on one wall granted a comforting view of the ether rushing by, which provided illumination of a pearly persuasion for whoever might sit at a large mahogany desk just below it.

The Composer sat poised at this desk. She had reshaped herself into the form of a statuesque (in height, at least) female human, wearing a peacock-blue evening gown embroidered with fractalesque feather designs in midnight blue. Beneath the bobbed, dark hair were whiteless, piercingly azure eyes. She stood and walked across the room to one of the two doors in the room. It was rather nondescript, and through the sanded glass the letters for MANAGER could be determined, in reverse order mirror image.

Her hand on the door, the Composer finally responded. "Now, Drae, it would hardly be sporting if I failed to give them a chance to recoup their losses, would it?" She turned to the others; Myst, Lan, and Yifan. "Now you know full well that I will not tolerate cheating in my casino." At this, the Creators' senses suddenly had full awareness of a hubbub, with a backing track of slot machines being played, emnating from behind the other door. "Not from any patrons. Not from any contestants. And certainly not from any of my staff." Inhuman eyes looking at each Creator in turn meaningfully, she added. "I catch you tipping the odds in anyone's favour, you're in for a multiverse of pain."

The door swung open, not to an office space, not to a back door to the casino itself, but to a room devoid of light (or, it seemed, existence). The Composer ushered them through one by one. "By the way... we do have standards of presentation at Mount Casino. I suggest you all dress for the occasion."

The door swung shut with the click of a pocket universe being sealed off. The Composer returned to her desk, checked her eight antiquated video camera screens were functioning with a sense of nostalgia, smoothed her hair down, and headed for the other door.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 04:33 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Drakenforge.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 05:08 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MyifanW.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 05:18 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Lankie.

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 05:52 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Drakenforge.

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**Schazer** · 01-21-2010, 05:55 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Schazer.

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**Schazer** · 01-21-2010, 08:28 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Schazer.

The four contestants first heard, then saw, the crowd in the casino. They numbered perhaps fifty or so, mingling quietly; all were wearing formal evening wear. Quite a few more men than women, but all human.

Or, at least, if you were going to just take in the rough outline and shape of everyone present, they would all qualify as human - albeit an outlandishly styled bunch for such a posh establishment. A lot of them carried weapons, but none seemed ready just yet to use them; swords and knives were popular, one monocled toff had a cane. A lot of suits had wild colours - Whit noticed one very popular, bearded gentleman whose right sleeve was purple, engaged in a flamboyant conversation with a bejeweled rogue wearing a dashing blue coat; a man with only one green eye and a bone-white right sleeve to his suit sneered at Zeke's attire in passing.

There were other little features, also off... Too many mad grins and blank eyes in the crowd. Itzal saw one hulking man with an unbelievably plain face, but his vest and rolled-up sleeves revealed a dragon tattoo on each arm. A few people had masks; some had several and seemed to enjoy alternating between them. If one were to concentrate, you'd notice nearly twenty people who were so nondescript they managed to completely fail to leave an impression.

Mike was contemplating taking on a man in a greatcoat and trilby, and his sullen, silent, dark-haired female companion, when the crowd's attention shifted to an inaccessible balcony that overlooked the whole casino floor. Moments later, a lady in a midnight-blue evening gown emerged and called out to the crowd. There were no visible means of amplification of her voice, yet everyone in the room heard it as if she stood beside them in a quiet room. Two men, one built like a tank and wearing gauntlets, one smaller and clutching what looked like the handle of a broken tool, ceased their feverish discussion and paid attention, motioning for Mike to do the same.

"Welcome, one and all, to Monte Casino! For one night only, I can personally guarantee you will find nowhere else with higher stakes than what we offer you today."

Next to Itzal, a petite woman in a pink dress sighed dreamily, gazing adoringly up at the Composer, who was now stating the expected behaviour of the patrons tonight. Her spiel was halted by someone in the crowd asking what the ante was on the tables. Smiling, the Composer replied, "I'm certain someone could demonstrate. How about... you?"

Mike thought he was being pointed at, but the roving light was trained on the man behind him - the one holding a broken-off handle. Turning with some trepidation to ascertain it was him being selected, he walked over to a craps table, placed his tool in the spot normally reserved for tokens, and cast the dice.

"Snake Eyes," called the stickman. Nobody heard as an agonized scream drowned him out. The gauntleted companion of the unlucky patron grabbed his fallen friend and carried him out of the spotlight. Blood streamed from between the fingers of the shrieking man as he clutched his eye. All eyes were dragged back to the Composer, though she had done nothing to call their attention back.

"Well, that was a rather accurate example of what goes on here. I trust you'll have more luck. Now, go forth!" As she departed, a sort of spell broke, rousing the guests out of their docility. They looked around at the various games on offer, seeing the first man's misfortune not as a warning, but encouragement. If that was what you could lose, what was there to gain?

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GBCE · 01-21-2010, 08:44 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MyifanW.

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Fate played it's hand indeed! It could even affect the nature of gods! Whit laughed a bit. Even the skull seemed to agree. Whit looked around... These people had the same air to them as the other contestants. They probably all were fighters. No problem, he liked it this way. All it meant was the rules would be enforced by the public. Normally, this would bother him, to be hindered by rules again- but it was apparent the rules were superficial here. If the bleeding man was any example, anything could be bet- and still, they were here to bet their lives. It occurred to him that here was a place to play a game with Itzal... being in a home environment evened the playing field.
He was thinking again, clearly. The skull seemed pleased, if a bit less powerful. This was a place where he, himself could shine- but first, he needed to figure everything out. He glanced right and left at the other contestants. They didn't seem quite sure if they should fight or not... Good.
Whit briskly stepped forward, to a poker table. The strange people watched him cautiously. He smiled a little, thin smile. The denizens of the casino began to turn away- he was one of them. Sitting down, he greeted the others.
"Hello. My name is Whit. This is my first time here. Could you explain the rules?"

"nope."
"nah."
"heh."

Nobody at the table seemed to keen on responding. Whit turned to the Dealer... and saw something... familiar?
The dealer smiled, nodded, and began dealing.
"Don't worry," he said, "I know you'll learn. You'll do fine."
Whit stared at the Dealer, but could not make out exactly... Oh well, it didn't matter. He tenetively dug through his pocket, and pulled out the .500 caliber revolver that he had barely used. Instantly, he felt blades against his neck. Slowly, without moving, he glanced around to see several firearms pointed at him. He slowly placed the gun in the chip slot. The weapons went back in their sheathes. Whit made note of the nature of this casino and glanced down at the chip slot. A small screen said: 510. The gun was worth 510 chips, it seemed. He looked around- the others had chip counts in the thousands. Whit sighed, and decided to test something else. He removed most of the hoodoo shards from his jackets, and dropped them in. The count jumped to 2780. It seemed that magical items were weighed fairly heavily in terms of worth... He looked up and smiled. The game began.
The first game, he lost. He did it mostly on purpose- to further test the system. However, he wouldn't discount the skill of the others. They had... a special touch to them. Whit lost 200 chips.
"So, where would you like those chips to come from?" The dealer said.

Whit blinked, but thought he had the gist of it. He pointed at the gun.
"Yes, that's acceptable. All from there?"
"Yes."
The gun seemed to dissolve, pieces flying over to the other player's slots, and then only half the gun remained.

The dealer spoke again. "By the way, you aren't allowed to leave with just a piece of an item. Items must remain in the game at all times, as pieces of an item are hardly worth the same as the whole, right? If you must go, though, you are certainly allowed to trade your piece in for chips, so long as the piece stays on the table."

"...That makes sense. Alright, I believe I understand now. Let's play again, shall we?"

In two games, he earned back twice what he had lost. He noticed that he had the whole gun again- it must have been an obvious action for the other players, to let go of things that weren't whole, that couldn't be used. Whit made note of this, and continued his play. He'd amass what he could here, in preparation for more dangerous games. Although interesting, the people at this table were in no way ready to bet everything- they weren't worth truly playing. The dealer grinned as he watched Whit's dangerous playing.

MalkyTop · 01-21-2010, 08:44 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MalkyTop.

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Dragon Fogel · 01-21-2010, 08:57 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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**Schazer** · 01-21-2010, 08:59 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Schazer.

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 05:34 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by Lankie.

A similar silence settled in, the round was changing once more and once again Zeke had to bare with the eternity and the instant of the transistion. Zeke simply sat there and waited.

The new world draped past the last like a curtain, Zeke's calm was quickly replaced with one of panic. He quickly stood up and looked round quickly. "What the..." It was a rare time in which Zeke was genuinly suprised.

An entire casino beckoned before him. Slot machines and green tables littered the bright red carpet, the sound system bellowed out music, acommpying the chimes of the various machines. But that wasn't the most surprising part, what was surprising was the fact that there were people here!

The whole Casino bustled with people, all wearing tuxedo's and dresses, it all seemed alien to Zeke, until he noticed everyone was heavily armed. Despite the heavy weaponry everyone carried, Zeke stuck out like a sore thumb in his ragged leathers
"Y'alright mate?"
Zeke quickly turned round, putting his arms up, he saw a bearded man in an apron, cleaning a glass with a towel, he had a huge battleaxe strapped to his back. Zeke appeared to be right next to a bar.
"Whoa, calm down, jeez. Anything I can get ya?"
Zeke was lost for words, he had spent the last four rounds in isolation, the only people around being those he needed to kill, he soon snapped out of it "Err...W...water?"
The barkeeper gave Zeke a distant look "Comin up." He quickly headed towards a tap and filled a glass, placing it on the bar near Zeke.
Zeke took the glass and downed the water in one go, the barkeeper glanced over the bar.
"You should really get that fixed up mate."
Zeke looked in confusement as he put the glass down. He tipped his head down to see Itzal's dagger still lodged into his ankle "Great. We don't heal anymore." Zeke went down and pulled the dagger out with a grunt, he ripped a bit of fabric from his tattered clothes and wrapped it round his ankle. Zeke came back up to face the barkeeper.
"Could I get some more water please?

Robust Laser · 01-22-2010, 10:45 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by cyber95.

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 11:48 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by Mystify.

Itzal stood in the middle of the room, clutching the gash in his stomach where he removed the shard. Seeming relatively safe, it took the time to close the wound, before scouting out he area. Itzal walked past the machines of chance, eventually spotting Whit at a table. Itzal wordlessly sat down beside him and placed the mesmerizer on the chip counter. 1000. It picked up the dealt hand, and started examining the other players. Their poker faces were excellent, but Itzal picked up the slightest cues. Except for Whit. Whit wad completely unreadable.
Whit looked at Itzal as he sat down. He was unnerved by the complete lack of tells coming from it. In fact, it was as unreadable as the first time he had encountered it. Very well, luck shall see him through.

GBCE · 01-22-2010, 12:26 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MyifanW.

"No need to depend on luck here, Whit." The skull said.

Whit sort of agreed, but he could still feel luck and fate's hands. They were necessary, and occurred in every instance of life. But, as long as this was how the game would play out... Well, he'd put forth as much of himself as he could.

"This place is perfect, isn't it? For that game we had to play..." He said, lowly.
He didn't get a reply.
He glanced back at Itzal. He couldn't read Itzal, but it was still fine. He'd just be playing relatively blind... and, in this hand, it didn't matter at all. These cards were towards the end of the deck- and he had counted every card that had been played so far, besides the cards that were burned or folded. The burned cards would be a mystery, but the folded cards were fairly guessable. For example, The pirate looking man groaned when he saw the river of the game he had folded from. A groan like that implied that it would have been a good hand, more than a pair at least- there were two 3s on the table, along with a 10. That pirate probably had a 3, and maybe a 10.

The game played out. Whit had an ace and a 6, a fairly decent hand. On the table, there was a king, ace, 6, and a 4. Whit had a two pair so far, and a fairly strong one. The man to his left and the pirate folded. It was a low chip count game, which meant they didn't even have a pair yet, else they would have stayed in just see the game through. He calculated the chances... Yes, he was essentially guaranteed to win this hand.

And he did. Itzal only had a king pair. Part of the mesmerizer and several chips appeared in his slot. Whit looked at Itzal, and smiled a little. Itzal's little tricks didn't mean anything here...

There was about one more game that could be played out of the current deck, and Whit was certain he knew what it contained. The dealer laughed a little and dealt the cards. Whit checked them carefully. a 2 and a 7. Normally, this hand would be worthless, but with the remaining cards, there was only one pair left possible- a 7 pair.
He raised the stakes a little, betting all 510 points of his gun. Itzal followed, and all the others folded. Whit smiled, and raised to 1000. Itzal followed. The cards on the table read : 3, jack, 7, 10, 9. Ha! It was over... They revealed their hands. A seven pair, like expected- what? Something unexpected had happened. Itzal had... a Jack pair. How was that... Whit thought back. He had confirmed that two jacks had been used, and he was almost certain that the third had been folded... He grimanced as he remembered. Itzal had some sort of teleportation ability... Whit wanted to announce that Itzal was cheating, but honestly, it couldn't be done so easily. He needed to be able to prove it... Whit was deep in thought, and absentmindedly choose to give Itzal the Mesmerizer piece and several of the hoodoo shards back for the loss.

GBCE · 01-22-2010, 01:10 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Lankie.

Zeke sat at the bar, surveying the room, he knew about gambling but casino's were alien to him. He didn't even know how a slot machine worked, let alone any card games. Zeke glared at the table Whit and Itzal. He couldn't believe it, he knew they had an alliance but this was ridicoulous, playing card games...Zeke could just kill them now, they were obviously far engrossed in there childish games to matter about this. But no, it was far too risky, each and everyone in the room was heavily armed and no doubt trained in combat, should Zeke fail to kill them, he would be overwhelmed.

Whit glanced round inbetween rounds of cards, he caught Zeke's unforgiving gaze from the bar. Zeke hawked him, ready to strike, not even blinking. Whit uncomfortably turned back to the game at hand.

What Zeke needed was an injection of chaos. Mike was the perfect candidate to cause it, to turn this crowd into a free-for-all, then Zeke could strike. He wasn't sure if his alliance with him was still good. He was unhinged at best afterall. Still Zeke decided to wait, taking more glasses of water. Zeke noticed that Itzal's dagger, which he absent mindedly put on the desk had slowly ebbed away to just a handle. "I hope you got more hardware than that if you keep up this rate."

GBCE · 01-22-2010, 01:34 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Drakenforge.

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Mike leaned to the right against a wall, supported by his arm. He tried to wiggle the toes of his left foot.
No response. He gazed downwards to find the stump left by the last round. It stopped shortly past the knee.He curse dunder his breath, unheard in the noise of the casino. Shit was going down. These people were odd, battle royale odd. To hm they all felt like contestants.
A sudden elation overcame him. He had first thought they were ordinary humans, the creatures he loathed so much. But he could feel it. They wouldn't die very easily. No, they would be as challenging as the others, if not more so. He glanced around the room, looking at individual people. There was a man in nothing but a fur loincloth playing roulette. His eyes were yellow, and Mike could smell him from where he stood. He was next to a lanky man with skinny bones who had a similer smell, but less musky.
Across the room, there was a figure hidden beneath a black cloak. He sat at the blackjack table. Mike summoned a vector and used it as a crutch to limp over to him.
"Whats the price?" He casually asked the dealer.
"Anything, leading to everything"

"And the reward?"

"Up to you, as long as you got the chips"

He stared down at the table, watching the game unfold. The cloaked figure seemed familiar to Mike, but he wasn't paying enough attention to guess who he was. He unslung the shotgun from his back, dug out the shells and piled them up into the slots.
1040 chips. He asked them to be made into the chips themselves, and the dealer obliged. They quickly disintegrated, only to be replaced by a small pile of differently coloured chips. He picked some up, counted out a hundred and placed it into the betting box. He was dealt two cards.
He sat into the chair and, before checking his cards, wore the grin he saved for do or die situations.
He had seen the guards back at the facility where he was contained playing cards. He knew the rules slightly, but this game was the easiest, and the fastest.
He glanced around the room, not eyeing others up, he was no expert on reading people, but actively challenging them with his bloodthirsty eyes.
The dealer revealed his first card to be a nine.
Someone asked for a card. From that he had 18. He stayed.
The next had a hard 17, and hesitated before folding. Mike saw that it was an old woman.
When it came to the man next to him, who had a three and a four, he hit. A nine. He hit again. two. He stayed.
Mike looked down. He had 11 from a five and a six.

"Hit me"

The dealer tossed him a seven.

"Eighteen." He announced.

Mike was last on the table. The dealer looked around the table once and lifted his second card. A queen. Mike watched his credits get taken away, and glanced at the others. The old lady watched as part of a large bible disapeared. The cloaked man got his bet back.

Mike stayed where he was, insisting on seeing how far this game could really go.

Zeke glared at the bartender and quickly pocketed the makeshift handle. He took another quick glance and finally spotted Mike sitting at a table. His bare back and white pants made him stand out in the colour fest. Zeke allowed himself a brief moment of annoyance. Mike, the guns blazing mad animal, was playing a card game? He walked at a brief pace to stand behind Mike, making sure not to get close.

"I thought you'd have more balls than this, lunatic"

Mike swiveled round in his chair, showing of the stump that was hidden to Zeke before.

"Just trying to even out my battlefield, ninja"

Now that was interesting. Zeke had left Mike alone for only a few moments at the end of the round and he had lost most of his leg? Now he understood that piercing scream of rage. And the swearing, but he was used to that by now.

"Ouch" Zeke replied sarcastically, "Who managed that?"

[color=#00400]"Itzal, crushed it with one of those blocks. I cut it off though. I think I managed to wound Whit though, and that makes me the first one to do so, I think"[/color]

Zeke thought back to the previous rounds. As Mike had suggested, Zeke had not seen anyone actually draw blood from Whit, or at least caused noticible damage. Zeke guessed that, like his ankle, he would still be slightly hurt. Good. Maybe that would help in the long run. He couldn't help but realize that, while Mike's stump was healed and still showed bone and flesh and muscle, it was not bleeding. But, on the other hand, if that was not the case, Mike would probably have died by then, or at least passed out.

"Hmm. Interesting. Alright then, when you have finished, meet me at the bar. It's too peaceful around here for our tastes. Besides, I have no idea what is going on. Never been to a casino

"I agree" Mike chuckled, "Just let me earn a foot and i'll join you. Hear that dealer? As soon as I have enough chips, put them into restoring this leg" He raised it slightly and even pointed. "i don't care if I go broke from the process, just make sure to remember"

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 01:36 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Drakenforge.

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 01:39 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by MyifanW.

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 02:28 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Lankie.

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GBCE · 01-22-2010, 02:39 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by snoomanwaff.

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